Punjab Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan allegedly appointed his brother-in-law, an active NBP employee, as his Personal Staff Officer in violation of law and Supreme Court orders, sources claim, enabling double government salaries.
By WebDesk | Accountability & Governance Desk | MediaBites.com.pk
Pakistan’s unemployment rate stands at 7.1% in 2025-26, according to the Pakistan Economic Survey. Millions of qualified young Pakistanis cannot find a single government job. And the Punjab Governor allegedly ensured his brother-in-law is drawing two government salaries simultaneously.
When the governor himself breaks the law, the question Pakistani citizens are asking is both simple and devastating: Jab Governor hee qanoon ki khilaf verzi karay ga, to aam awam kya karey gee?
The Allegation
Sources have alleged that Punjab Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan has appointed his brother-in-law, Sardar Muhammad Ali Khan, as his Personal Staff Officer (PSO), in what sources describe as a direct violation of law and explicit Supreme Court orders prohibiting such appointments.
The alleged problem is not simply the nepotism of the appointment itself. It is what that appointment enables financially.
Sardar Muhammad Ali Khan is reportedly a serving employee of National Bank of Pakistan’s Fateh Jang Branch, District Attock. He is allegedly receiving his full NBP monthly salary, allowances, and perks as a bank employee, simultaneously with his PSO compensation package from the government treasury, which includes a high salary, an official vehicle, government accommodation, a fuel allowance, a mobile phone allowance, and additional facilities.
In simple terms, sources allege that he is being paid twice from public funds for what amounts to one person’s worth of work. One salary from NBP. One salary from the Punjab Governor’s office. Both from the government treasury. Both simultaneously.
The Legal Violation
Pakistan’s legal framework on dual employment in government positions is not ambiguous. The Supreme Court of Pakistan has issued clear orders prohibiting the appointment of individuals already in government employment to additional government positions without proper process.
The appointment of a serving NBP employee, a public sector institution, as PSO to the Governor of Punjab without following due process allegedly violates both the letter and the spirit of those Supreme Court directives.
Sources are categorical: “Sardar Muhammad Ali Khan is receiving two salaries and benefits from the government treasury every month, which is a crime.”
When Confronted, He Changed His Story
When this correspondent contacted Sardar Muhammad Ali Khan for his response to the dual salary allegations, his answer was revealing in its contradiction.
Rather than addressing the specific question of whether he is simultaneously an NBP employee and the Punjab Governor’s PSO, he stated: “I am an NBP employee, and I have come to the Senate of Pakistan on deputation.”
The Senate of Pakistan. Not the Punjab Governor’s office.
A detailed questionnaire was subsequently sent to his personal WhatsApp number, asking directly whether he is simultaneously holding two government positions: at the NBP Fateh Jang Branch and as PSO to the Punjab Governor. He did not respond.
The Governor Did Not Respond Either
Punjab Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan was contacted for his official position on the allegation that he appointed his brother-in-law to the PSO role in violation of Supreme Court orders. Despite repeated attempts, the Governor was not available for comment.
MediaBites extends the same offer it always does in accountability reporting: if Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan wishes to share his official position on this matter, it will be published in full and without editorial alteration.
The Broader Indictment
Pakistan’s Economic Survey identifies unemployment at 7.1% as one of the country’s most pressing social and economic challenges. Every illegitimate dual appointment, every nepotistic position given to a relative already drawing a government salary, represents not just a legal violation but a stolen opportunity.
Somewhere in Punjab, a qualified young Pakistani applied for a government position, passed the relevant tests, waited through the process, and did not get the job. Because the job, or something very much like it, went to the Governor’s brother-in-law, who was already employed at a public sector bank.
Pakistan’s elite do not simply benefit from the system. It actively constructs the system to benefit itself while calling the resulting dysfunction a governance challenge that requires more time and patience from the public.
Jab Governor hee qanoon ki khilaf verzi karay ga, to aam awam kya karey gee?
That question deserves a public answer. The Governor has our number.
— Imran Malik | Accountability and Governance Desk | MediaBites.com.pk | Southera.com
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Disclaimer: All allegations in this report are based on source information and have not been independently verified by MediaBites. Both the Punjab Governor and Sardar Muhammad Ali Khan have been offered the opportunity to respond. This report will be updated upon receipt of any official response.
